As soon as he reached the shelter of the
trees the Saracen paused... he tilted his head, listening
for the sounds that would tell him that Robin and Scarlet
had reached them as well. When he was convinced they had
Nasir began to circle around the villagers. Cautiously
skirting the road he doubled back to find to find a
vantage point that would allow him to watch the Sheriff's
man, careful to leave no sign of his passing behind. He
had heard the stories of Gisburne... de Belleme
considered him a joke... a fool in the service of a still
bigger fool. He himself had witnessed his inaptitude at
the shooting competition, though at the time it had not
been his concern. Times had changed though, he would need
to know the man's weaknesses if he were to use them
against him in the future. Pausing again he cocked
his head, listening for any sign of pursuit, or battles
being fought, with the exception of the normal forest
sounds he heard nothing, and once again he began to
move...

Will felt sorry for the girl who's desperate
embrace he had to break off, but he knew Gisburne
wouldn't be too polite with him or the girl if he was
caught on the open road... he cursed aloud when he found
he was unable to pick up his bow he'd left near the cart,
only the quiver which now hung down from his belt. From
the corner of his eye he saw a gap closing in the foliage
surrounding them where Robin had rushed through and no
sign of Nasir... as if the Saracen had vanished into thin
air without leaving a visible trace. Will threw himself
into the nearest bushes, hoping the brambles would leave
some of his skin undamaged as the thorns snagged at his
clothes. Oh well, their adventure hadn't exactly gone the
way they planned it... "So, that's what you call
scouting the surroundings, Robin," Will snorted
under his breath. He soon paused, expecting being
followed by Gisburne and his men... where on earth did
the Sheriff get so many men after they had killed so many
of them during the battle following the archery contest
and the showdown at Castle de Belleme?

As the forest around him remained silent and his heavy
breathing was the only sound, Will decided not to return
to their camp directly... if there was no immediate
danger from Gisburne, maybe there was a chance to get his
bow back. Will wasn't too fond of manufacturing a new
one... he wasn't the greatest archer, his weapons were
his sword, his knife and his temper... often he had
fought men far more skilled than he was and he had won by
simply letting his anger fuel his blows. But he had found
himself comfortable with this particular bow... so he
slowly returned, trying to avoid any sound but unable to
prevent some twigs from snapping under his weight...
fortunately Gisburne, his men and their horses were loud
enough to cover those betraying sounds. Will saw his bow
where he had left it near one of the carts. Well, it
shouldn't be too hard to get it back... he crouched and
watched through the bushes as the blond knight questioned
the also blond leader of the villagers. All he needed was
a nice little distraction....

Much on
his way back into camp

On his way to the camp Much was thinking about
himself and his life in Sherwood... it wasn't easy for
him especially since he was the youngest of the outlaws.
He missed living at his father's home. He was getting
angry and sad as he thought at his father who had been
killed by Gisburne. One day he would surely take revenge
for the loss of his family. At least he still had Robin.
And even if it was very hard, he would follow Robin
wherever he would lead him to. Robin always knew what to
do.. and Much would fight for him as best as he could.

Arriving
at the camp he could see John, Tuck and Marion sitting
around the fire. He couldn't hear what they were talking
about, he still was too far away. As he looked at Marion
who was sitting next to Tuck he moved slower and finally
stopped. What was it about her? She had lost her family
and her home, too. Was she feeling lonely? Of course, she
had Robin and Tuck. But that didn't explain why she had
joined the outlaws.. she was a woman... would she stay?
Her feelings should be the same as his own... And Will?
As he thought about what had happened to Will before
joining the outlaws, Much realized that now Sherwood was
his home. He had to stay with Robin and John, Tuck,
Marion, Will and also Nasir, they all were his family,
now. He wasn't alone! Encouraged by those thoughts Much
started walking again and moved directly to the others.
He had to bring important news to them...

Marion

Marion sat by the lean-to repairing a slight tear at
the edge of her cloak. She looked up every so often and
watched Little John and Friar Tuck banter back and forth
in a friendly manner. She smiled at them and finished her
work. Marion put the needle and thread away marvelling at
how she came to be in Sherwood. She had been here for
some time now, learning about the trees, herbs and how to
survive in the wild. It can be hard live here, but she
did not want to imagine being anywhere else. In Sherwood,
she could do so much more to help and aid those oppressed
by the King or that Sheriff of Nottingham. And to think
who he might have married her to, maybe even Sir Guy...
at this she shuddered. "That", she swore
silently to herself, "will never happen. I'd be a
nun and finish my vows this time or throw myself to the
wolves." In her mind, she saw herself running in a
very comical manner with her arms flailling behind her as
she ran to a pack of hungry wolves screaming, "SAVE
ME!!" She chuckled and shook her head. Though, in a
way, she realized that she had thrown herself to the
wolves and the King of the wolves. Those wolves have
proven to be the best companions and friends that she
could ever have.

As for that 'wolf's head' Robin, she
could love no one more. Had she chosen the solitary,
lonely life of a nun, she would have never met her good
friends John, Will, Much, Tuck, Nasir or the love of her
life Robin. She walked over to John and Tuck happy with
her choice to live in Sherwood. She began to talk with
them and prepare dinner for the rest of the party's
homecoming.

Brother
Simon

Brother Simon awoke with a start. It was not yet
morning, but the sky had started to lighten and a mist
hung in the air below the tree line. No birds had yet
started singing, and an eerie atmosphere pervaded the
forest. He had been dreaming vividly, mostly of Abbot
Hugo and the mysterious mission on which the priest had
sent him, his visions pervaded by dark imaginings. Waking
up he was dismayed to find himself lying on a pile of
damp leaves, rather than the hard monastery bed he was
used to. He soon recollected himself and resolved to
carry on through the forest. Making his way to the glade
where he had tethered his horse, Simon was confronted
with a sight which sent his spirits into a rapid decline.
The rope with which he had tied the horse was still
safely attached to the huge split oak, which still
towered skywards. However the horse was gone.

Simon
shivered. He had trusted to God's grace to keep him safe
on this perilous quest, but now this had happened. It
surely was a sign that he had somehow displeased the
Lord, proving that his piety was not as great as he had
thought. As Simon knelt to pray for forgiveness, he was
aware that the mist was increasing, invading his nostrils
with its pungent odour. Opening his eyes, he was
horrified to discover that the mist now enveloped the
entire glade and he could see nothing, not even the boles
of the enormous trees which were but metres away. The air
was full of the musky smells of nature and the sounds of
wild creatures. Resisting the urge to give way to blind
panic, Simon prayed for guidance. He thought that he
heard a faint voice calling to him, telling him not to be
afraid, and the sound of a horse whinnying in the
distance. His senses dulled, Simon started to stumble
towards the source of the noise, making his way through
gullies and bogs frantically in a dreamlike state. He
thought he glimpsed his horse on a ridge in the distance,
standing next to something that looked like a stag? Both
were visible only momentarily to Simon, before
disappearing back into the mist. Simon stumbled on,
coming ever closer to unconsciousness as his mind sought
to explain what he had seen and could not. The last thing
of which he was aware before mercifully blacking out, was
that he was surrounded by the misty sillouettes of
strangers, one of which might have been a woman, and all
were somehow concerned with his arrival. His mind could
take no more, and he fainted.

Robin on
his way back to camp

Robin glanced over his shoulder to make sure Will and
Nasir followed his call... as he saw they did he rushed
through the bushes. He didn't pick the same path back
he'd come here before, but ran at a steady pace deeper
into the forest, never afraid he might lose his way...
this forest was his ally, not his enemy. Instinctively he
knew he and his friends would find their back to camp
safely. If they ran into some Norman soldiers... well, he
wouldn't bet too high on the hired soldiers to survive
any confrontation with the always angry Scarlet or the
Saracen's twin blades unharmed.

The young man laughed
in mid-running as he thought of how surprised Gisburne
would look if he'd find the bound villains... in his
opinion the Sheriff's steward was not clever enough to
suspect anyone might have helped the villagers. Besides,
that blond man he had spoken to, Edward of Wickham,
seemed to be someone who could be trusted. He wouldn't
betray those who had just saved his live and the lives of
those who were with him.

Infact, defeating the cutthroats should be worth
something to Edward. Robin decided a visit to Wickham was
one of the next things to do. He knew the outlaws needed
help themselves.... ears to hear and eyes to see for them
what was going on in the shire, maybe this settlement
would be their first foothold.

He stopped running as he heard a twig snap, and a deer
broke away from him in panic. Seeing the hind, notching
an arrow to his bow and releasing it was one swift move -
the hind fell to the ground. "Tuck, here's your
dinner," Robin murmured and draped the deer across
his shoulders. The weight of his bag slowed him down, and
he eventually realized he'd come to a part of Sherwood
he'd never been to before... tall trunks twined around
with ivy blocked out the sun and he felt like walking
down an emerald aisle through all shades of green. Will
and Nasir should have been in camp by now, he thought,
and let his intuition lead the way.

He crossed a small clearing and made his way deeper
into the green twilight. At first he didn't realize how
silent the forest around him had become - no bird was to
be heard and no leaf was stirred in the foliage, instead
Robin felt being watched. He stopped and turned, the deer
still on his shoulders.

"Herne?" he asked cautiously.

The
Saracen is watching

The Saracen paused as he heard the sound of horses on
the road to his left... their gait was slow... which was
surprising... so they weren't in pursuit... what then? He
slipped through the trees, careful to keep his noise
level to a minimum as he moved, angling his path so he
would reach a vantage point slightly ahead of where they
were now.

As he reached a sheltered point he
stopped... squatting he notched an arrow in his bow and
waited... his eyes fixed on the road before him. It was
only a matter of moments before they appeared... he
counted...14 riders, no Gisburne... then he noticed that
some rode double... they had the bandits with them, but
no villagers... he raised his eyes to the sky and gauged
his location from that. No doubt they were being taken to
Nottingham, there was nothing he could do alone, those
that survived would talk of those that had attacked them.

Nasir waited until the riders were well past before
moving, slipping the arrow back into the quiver before he
headed towards the camp... Robin would need to know, once
they talked Gisburne was sure to return to search for
them. He increased his pace the farther from the road he
got, with luck both Robin and Will would be there when he
arrived.

To the
trees - Will's decision

Crouching behind the bushes Will Scarlet's eyes
darted from the group of men on the road to where his bow
lay forgotten on the ground beside the cart and back to
the soldiers. His hand was itching to grab the hilt of
his sword as he saw Gisburne placing a fist in the face
of the villager. Whatever bad habits he had, one of
Will's best character features was his hatred towards any
kind of violence originating from men in armour against
helpless people... his fingers closed around the hilt
eventually and for a moment he was considering charging
Gisburne, thinking of how he would enjoy killing the
Sheriff's steward, then regained control over his
emotions. No, not here and now... he wouldn't be much of
a help if he died today in a senseless battle... a
senseless battle like the one that had brought him into
the dungeons of Notthingham Castle. Slowly his fingers
loosened their grip. There would come a day...

Will
shifted his weight from one leg to the other.
What should he do now? There was no way he could get
his bow back as long as Gisburne and his men were on the
road, on the other hand he needed to return to the camp
before Robin would miss him. He straightened up, then
repeated his last thought.. before Robin would miss him?
The sturdy man shook his head... since when did Will
Scatchlock care what anyone else were thinking? Who was
this young boy anyway, calling himself "Herne's
son"? Will snorted before the movement on the road
demanded his attention. Gisburne was ordering his men...
Will spat out in the direction of the Norman knight, then
turned and slowly began to make his way back through the
forest and the myriad of gnats to the camp.

Much and
Marion (Back in camp)

During his last steps to the fire Much moved
faster. More than before he had the feeling it would
be important to deliver his news quickly and he had
already wasted time. Approaching the small
group still sitting around the fire, Much put his
staff on the ground and sat down next to Little John. He
could see the faces of his friends turning to him and he
also noticed the broad grin of John who was probably
remembering the last fighting-lesson and wondering
about Much's early return to the camp.

"I saw a monk riding through the forest not far away
from the vantage point." Much started to report
about his strange discovery. "He seemed in a
big hurry when he passed under the tree I was hiding
in." Much's words tumbled over themselves as he
started asking the questions in his mind, not waiting for
the others to reply. "Marion, could he be one of
Abbot Hugo's men?" The boy turned towards Tuck.
"Tuck, what does that mean?" Then finally he
addressed John. "Why does a monk ride
alone through the forest?"

Marion looked over Much. "It's very possible. I'd
need to get a good look at him first before I can tell
you for sure if he is one of Abbot Hugo's men. The only
thing that I hope is that they are not looking for
us..." Her words trailed off and she looked off into
the trees unwilling to show her anxiousness to her
friends. Under her breath she whispered. "I won't go
back without a fight."

Marion headed to the edge of the camp to catch sight of
Simon, hoping to find Robin first. She watched the trees
concerned for them all.